Voltage-Matched Strings using 3-Terminal Tandems: Fundamentals and End Losses

William McMahon; Henning Schulte-Huxel; Jeronimo Buencuerpo; Michelle Young; Talysa Klein; John Geisz; Adele Tamboli; Emily Warren

doi:10.1109/PVSC45281.2020.9300569

Voltage-Matched Strings using 3-Terminal Tandems: Fundamentals and End Losses

William McMahon, Henning Schulte-Huxel, Jeronimo Buencuerpo, Michelle Young, Talysa Klein, John Geisz, Adele Tamboli, Emily Warren

Institut fur Solarenergieforschung

Research output: Contribution to conference › Paper

Abstract

Strings constructed from 3-terminal tandem (3TT) cells can provide some of the performance benefits of voltage-matching with less cell complexity than strings based on 4-terminal tandem cells. However, the circuitry for a 3TT string can become more complex, making circuit analysis more challenging. Here we illustrate the essential features of single-polarity voltage-matched (VM) 3TT strings using representative examples. End losses are intrinsic to this type of string, but can be reduced by minimizing m and n in the Vtop/Vbot VM ratio m/n, and further mitigated by increasing the string length. This analysis agrees with preliminary experimental results.

Original language	American English
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1109/PVSC45281.2020.9300569
State	Published - 2021
Event	2020 47th IEEE Photovoltaic Specialists Conference (PVSC) - Calgary, Canada Duration: 15 Jun 2020 → 21 Aug 2020

Conference

Conference	2020 47th IEEE Photovoltaic Specialists Conference (PVSC)
City	Calgary, Canada
Period	15/06/20 → 21/08/20

NREL Publication Number

NREL/CP-5900-75894

Keywords

3TT
4TT
single-polarity voltage
strings

Access to Document

10.1109/PVSC45281.2020.9300569

Cite this

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title = "Voltage-Matched Strings using 3-Terminal Tandems: Fundamentals and End Losses",

abstract = "Strings constructed from 3-terminal tandem (3TT) cells can provide some of the performance benefits of voltage-matching with less cell complexity than strings based on 4-terminal tandem cells. However, the circuitry for a 3TT string can become more complex, making circuit analysis more challenging. Here we illustrate the essential features of single-polarity voltage-matched (VM) 3TT strings using representative examples. End losses are intrinsic to this type of string, but can be reduced by minimizing m and n in the Vtop/Vbot VM ratio m/n, and further mitigated by increasing the string length. This analysis agrees with preliminary experimental results.",

keywords = "3TT, 4TT, single-polarity voltage, strings",

author = "William McMahon and Henning Schulte-Huxel and Jeronimo Buencuerpo and Michelle Young and Talysa Klein and John Geisz and Adele Tamboli and Emily Warren",

year = "2021",

doi = "10.1109/PVSC45281.2020.9300569",

language = "American English",

note = "2020 47th IEEE Photovoltaic Specialists Conference (PVSC) ; Conference date: 15-06-2020 Through 21-08-2020",

}

TY - CONF

T1 - Voltage-Matched Strings using 3-Terminal Tandems: Fundamentals and End Losses

AU - McMahon, William

AU - Schulte-Huxel, Henning

AU - Buencuerpo, Jeronimo

AU - Young, Michelle

AU - Klein, Talysa

AU - Geisz, John

AU - Tamboli, Adele

AU - Warren, Emily

PY - 2021

Y1 - 2021

N2 - Strings constructed from 3-terminal tandem (3TT) cells can provide some of the performance benefits of voltage-matching with less cell complexity than strings based on 4-terminal tandem cells. However, the circuitry for a 3TT string can become more complex, making circuit analysis more challenging. Here we illustrate the essential features of single-polarity voltage-matched (VM) 3TT strings using representative examples. End losses are intrinsic to this type of string, but can be reduced by minimizing m and n in the Vtop/Vbot VM ratio m/n, and further mitigated by increasing the string length. This analysis agrees with preliminary experimental results.

AB - Strings constructed from 3-terminal tandem (3TT) cells can provide some of the performance benefits of voltage-matching with less cell complexity than strings based on 4-terminal tandem cells. However, the circuitry for a 3TT string can become more complex, making circuit analysis more challenging. Here we illustrate the essential features of single-polarity voltage-matched (VM) 3TT strings using representative examples. End losses are intrinsic to this type of string, but can be reduced by minimizing m and n in the Vtop/Vbot VM ratio m/n, and further mitigated by increasing the string length. This analysis agrees with preliminary experimental results.

KW - 3TT

KW - 4TT

KW - single-polarity voltage

KW - strings

U2 - 10.1109/PVSC45281.2020.9300569

DO - 10.1109/PVSC45281.2020.9300569

M3 - Paper

T2 - 2020 47th IEEE Photovoltaic Specialists Conference (PVSC)

Y2 - 15 June 2020 through 21 August 2020

ER -

Voltage-Matched Strings using 3-Terminal Tandems: Fundamentals and End Losses

Abstract

Conference

NREL Publication Number

Keywords

Access to Document

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Cite this